In the Game
by River2027
Summary: As Derek and Cameron search for John in Mexico, Derek witnesses firsthand just how much Cameron cares for John. Mention of John/Cameron


**Terminator: the Sarah Connor Chronicles**

title: In the Game

author: River2027

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Terminator

setting: during "Mr. Fergusen is Ill Today"

genre: adventure/drama

rating: T

warning: spoilers for "Mr. Fergusen is Ill Today"

summary: As Derek and Cameron search for John in Mexico, Derek witnesses firsthand just how much Cameron cares for John. Mention of John/Cameron

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_There are machines everywhere these days. _Jesse's words continued to haunt him. _Working against us, working with us. Connor's got at least one in every major camp. A big one flipped on us._

When their own resident Terminator had turned on John, Derek Reese hadn't been surprised. He'd seen it coming. He'd tried to warn John, but John hadn't been listening. _The machine has got to go. I can't sleep with it here. It's not a person, it's not something you should be trusting._

He'd thought John would finally see reason, finally acknowledge the fact that the machines carry death with them. They weren't people, they were weapons. Dirty work was all they were good for. They were assassins, killing machines. He'd thought that when Cameron flipped, John would finally realize that they could not be trained like pets, that they weren't real people no matter how they looked on the outside.

Instead, John had shocked him.

They'd had the bed of thermite ready. Derek had been eager to finally get rid of Cameron when John had betrayed them. His nephew had replaced the chip and when Derek had tried to stop him, John had turned a _gun_ on him…in defense of that _thing. _Derek couldn't get past how revolting it was, seeing the way that boy stood protectively over the innate body of the machine, despite the fact that mere hours ago, it had almost taken his life and would no doubt attempt to do so again.

And when Derek had backed off, John held the gun to his own mother. To Sarah Connor. In defense of that tin can. He'd made it promise not to kill him. He'd handed it his _gun _and all Derek could do was watch, knowing full well that everything they'd fought to stop would mean nothing if Cameron killed John right then. He watched with wide eyes as John took the machine by the hand and helped her out of the car, just accepting it back into his life. Just like that. Derek remembered the passion in John's voice after Cameron was deactivated. _"I need her. She saves my life."_

John had made mistakes.

But he wasn't stupid.

He would come around, eventually. That is, if they could find him...if Cromartie hadn't already been to the jail and destroyed the future leader of mankind...if Skynet hadn't already won.

The machine entered first, scanning the room. Derek saw several bodies scattered around the jail lobby and his heart sank. Cromartie had already been through. If John was still here, he'd be dead. Despite that knowledge, Cameron stalked up to a Mexican cop who was slumped against the desk, bleeding from a fatal gunshot wound.

She stared him directly in the eye. "I'm looking for John Baum. Where is he?" Her voice wavered slightly.

Derek shook his head. This is a waste of time…and the machine should know it. When the injured man did not answer, Cameron stood up stiffly, walking towards the cells with a quickened pace.

Derek frowned, glancing out into the street. This was stupid. Cromartie could be anywhere. He could be waiting for them; he could be returning to the jail... "We've gotta get out of here."

The metal didn't stop. "I've got to find John. I can't let anything happen to him."

Derek watched, eyes wide, as she quickly walked down the hall, searching the cells for any sign of John. Had he heard a catch in her voice, a twinge of fear in her tone? Was she worried about John? That wasn't possible, right? They don't have feelings, they don't feel. He had told that to John over and over again.

His cell phone rang and Derek flipped it open. To his relief, he heard Sarah's voice and he was aware of Cameron reentering the room. "We're here," he said. "We're at the jail. Wait, John's with you?"

Cameron's eyes snapped up, all anxiety gone. Derek wasn't sure what to make of her behavior. She was a machine; therefore he still didn't trust her. But he suddenly realized that she would never consciously harm John.

_Someday one of these things is gonna kill you._

_It's not gonna be this one._

He felt a sudden wave of nausea, remembering how John had defended that thing against Derek's logical reasoning. Cameron had lied to him, yet John had stuck up for her. She'd turned rogue and tried to kill him; he'd brought her back. But witnessing the strange behavior from Cameron, Derek realized something else.

It wasn't just John who cared for Cameron; Cameron cared for John.

She would do anything and everything to protect him. Just now, she had been acting irrational. Both she and Derek had known John would be dead if he was still in the jail. But, desperate to find him, she'd looked anyway. It was inefficient. And it was creepy.

She'd malfunctioned. She'd made mistakes. They all had. But if there was one thing Derek knew, it was this:

John Connor wasn't the only one who needed to get his head in the game.

_finis_

_author's note: I loved this scene in episode 8. When I heard Cameron's tone, I was touched by how worried she sounded. Derek seemed to look a little stunned in the background, so this fic is basically just what I imagined was running through his head. Please review!_


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